COTD: 'I love what you've done here' or 'What the hell did you do?'

"Zac Estrada" (zacestrada)
01/18/2014 at 09:20 • Filed to: COTD

OK, those aren't the only two answer choices. But if you haven't noticed, we like shaking things up every now and then. And

I haven't formally introduced myself. I'm Zac, I've been handling COTD on Jalopnik since October.

This week was weird because of Detroit and the Q&As. We've started using the reframe tool on doing "best comments of Q&As" edition of COTD. Then we started doing it on all the COTDs, with the new post on top of the one the COTD came from. I get the sense the community at large is not a fan, and it's OK if you aren't, but let's hear it in this post:

!!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! or !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! ?

!!! UNKNOWN CONTENT TYPE !!!

I think when we do COTD based on Q&As, we'll do the reframe. I like the way all the COTDs look with the reframe, but it makes it hard to comment just on COTD and that's a big part of the post.

Anything else about COTD you'd like to shout out (well not shout)? I'm hear to listen/read.

DISCUSSION (15)

TFen > Zac Estrada
01/18/2014 at 09:58

I swear you guys have meetings on how to ruin everything that once made Jalopnik great... Have you ever heard the mantra "If it aint broke, don't fix it?"

COTD is pretty well obsolete anyway. When you guys wrecked the commenting system you lost a lot of the great commenters.

PRBot II > Zac Estrada
01/18/2014 at 10:15

Where is everyone today?

Anyway, nearly everyone seems to prefer the old way, and I agree. The old way isn't as confusing, it engages the commentariat more, and $kay posts the scantily clad ladies.

Old way all the way.

vdub_nut: scooter snob > Zac Estrada
01/18/2014 at 10:16

Old, please.

$kaycog > Zac Estrada
01/18/2014 at 10:18

I like the old way. To receive a COTD is an honor, and the recipients deserve congratulatory comments. In the new way, that isn't possible. I've been here for over five years, and the old way has worked perfectly well.

Nice to meet you, Zac!

ADabOfOppo; Gone Plaid (Instructables Can Be Confusable) > Zac Estrada
01/18/2014 at 10:22

I agree that the old way is best.

I think you should use the new style only with the guest AMA conversations.

Roberto G. > Zac Estrada
01/18/2014 at 10:23

Old way for sure, even if I never got one. But old way.

Tom McParland > Zac Estrada
01/18/2014 at 10:46

Hey Zac, thanks for stopping in. While I understand where you are coming from with the framed post because it referenced the original there are some traditions that people really enjoy such as the congratulatory posts from $kaycog and others. Also the unique COTD post often generates new conversations. So, from a community perspective maybe best to stick with tradition.

Slave2anMG > Zac Estrada
01/18/2014 at 10:57

I'm going to quote TFen because 1) he said exactly what I wanted to say and 2) in the vain hope that SOMEBODY at Gawker will listen to the commentariat and stop fucking things up.

"I swear you guys have meetings on how to ruin everything that once made Jalopnik great... Have you ever heard the mantra "If it aint broke, don't fix it?"

COTD is pretty well obsolete anyway. When you guys wrecked the commenting system you lost a lot of the great commenters.

Zac, I'm asking you to understand that I'm not shooting the messenger here...but the users of Oppo and Jalopnik are getting pretty weary of the constant changes that invariably seem to make Kinja less stable and less reliable while those same changes invariably make comments more difficult to read and follow. This nonsense has chased off a number of the old heads here...and that's not good for Gawker Media.

Gamecat235 > Zac Estrada
01/18/2014 at 11:03

To expand on what I said previously, I really think that the shared post to frame the conversation makes a lot of sense. And in the case of Q&A sessions or when ex-writers/staff/common contributors are the primary featured conversation/comment it truly makes perfect sense to share the originating post.

And to be 100% honest, it makes sense with all of the others as well, but the COTD is one of the traditions we have maintained for a very very long time here. And some of the commenters have come to more or less expect to see it, and be able to address it directly. And my only real concern with not having a new post is that if people congratulate the winner(s) in the originating thread it may disrupt the conversation, which sometimes is still ongoing.

So my vote remains in the "keep it old school, except in cases where it makes sense to share all of the context directly." And I will add to that to say thank you for the post allowing some feedback.

Leadbull > Zac Estrada
01/18/2014 at 16:07

I think the "old is better" sentiment is pretty unanimous, so I'll just say this: thanks for being a Gawker employee who actually listens to the readers.

PushToStart > Zac Estrada
01/19/2014 at 17:38

Yeah, personally I like the old way a lot too, thanks for changing it back! I don't want to be "that guy" either but is there a way you could grant me the privelege of being out of the gray in the Jalopnik comments? I really want to contribute but it's kind of a bummer to say something and then just see it in the gray at the bottom where probably no one will see it...

Slave2anMG > Zac Estrada
01/19/2014 at 17:59

Zac, we're not weary of Kinja in and of itself. What we're weary of is the incessant and never ending futzing around with Kinja. Stop futzing with it and make a Kinja that works and works reliably all day every day. We're sick of the broken Kinja and the reformatting of Kinja and the comments that don't appear and the pictures that don't appear and the upcoming disaster of a commenting system that seems to be coming. SICK OF IT.

desertdog5051 > Zac Estrada
01/19/2014 at 18:34

Thank you, sir.

Xentron Holy Reaper of Worlds > Zac Estrada
01/19/2014 at 21:27

Anything else about COTD you'd like to shout out (well not shout)? I'm hear to listen/read.

WE CAN'T SHOUT AT YOU, BUT AT LEAST WE CAN TRY TO MAKE YOU READ IN A LOUD VOICE.

dogisbadob > Zac Estrada
01/20/2014 at 17:43

I just saw this now.

I had actually copy/pasted Monday's COTD award to oppo, that leaves out the merge, and someone replied to me with a link to your explanation.